NEW HAMPSHIRE 
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 

IN COOPERATION WITH 

The General Education Board 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH 



28 CAPITOL STREET 
CONCORD 



E MEASUREMENT OF 
ABILITY TO READ 



A MANUAL OF DIRECTIONS CONCERNING GIVING AND 
SCORING OF READING TESTS, STATISTICAL TREAT- 
MENT OF THE DATA AND DIAGNOSIS OF SCHOOL, 
CLASS, AND INDIVIDUAL NEEDS 



BY 

H. A. BROWN, 

Director of Bureau of Research 



Bulletin No. i 

Second Edition 

1916 



NEW HAMPSHIRE 
'DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 

IN COOPERATION WITH 

The General Education Board 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH 



23 CAPITOL STREET 
CONCORD 



THE MEASUREMENT OF 
ABILITY TO READ 



A MANUAL OF DIRECTIONS CONCERNING GIVING AND 
SCORING OF READING TESTS, STATISTICAL TREAT- 
MENT OF THE DATA AND DIAGNOSIS OF SCHOOL, 
CLASS, AND INDIVIDUAL NEEDS 



BY 

H. A. BROWN, 
Director of Bureau of Research 



Bulletin No. i 

Second Edition 

1916 



.B3 



THE RUMFORD PRESS 
CONCORD. N. H. 



n, of D, 
ocr 18 1913 






THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO 
READ. 

Introduction. 

One of the leading educational problems of the present 
day is that of measuring in a competent manner the efB- 
ciency of the work of the public school. In the past it has 
been necessary to rely upon opinion in many matters 
relating to the progress of children in school. This has 
been so, unavoidably, for the reason that there have been 
no adequate units, scales and tests with which to measure 
and express educational products. It has been necessary, 
therefore, to state the results of educational processes thus 
in terms of mere conjecture, which has had small scientific 
value. It is true, also, that a large part of the educational 
practice of the past has had no scientific foundation and 
that the results of much of the teaching have been meagre. 
This, too, may be accounted for in part by the lack of 
adequate means of measuring the efficiency of instruction 
and the absence of satisfactory methods of determining in 
any precise manner what real results were being secured in 
school. 

To a certain extent this condition still prevails, and on 
that account it may be said that, although considerable 
progress has made in this direction, one of the great needs in 
education at the present time is the establishment of units of 
measurement, reliable tests and standards of attainment in 
each subject by which the child's progress in school may be 
sicentifically and competently measured and the different 
types of instruction evaluated. 

This monograph is intended to give brief, simple, untech- 
nical directions for measuring the ability of children in 
silent reading, together with instructions concerning the 
statistical treatment of the data secured from such tests 
in order that a true picture of the actual condition of the 



4 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

pupils who are tested in relation to ability to read may be 
secured. 

Need of Reading Tests. 

There is probably no subject in the school curriculum 
in which there is a greater need for adequate tests with 
which to measure the accomplishment of children than in 
reading. A child's progress through school depends to a 
very large extent upon his ability to get a maximum of the 
thought out of the printed page in the smallest amount of 
time possible. His advancement in school is likely to be 
seriously hindered if he does not promptly acquire the 
ability to read with understanding and with reasonable 
rapidity. To discover early in the school course the pupils 
who are not succeeding in mastering the art of reading and 
apply remedial measures is of the utmost importance, both 
on account of the advantage to the child himself and also 
from the point of view of financial economy. 

It is desirable to measure reading ability in a scientific 
and objective manner in every school (i) for the purpose of 
determining the efficiency and progress of the pupils by 
comparison with proper standards for each grade, (2) to 
diagnose the needs of the class as a whole, and especially 
the individual needs of particular pupils, in order that future 
instruction may have a definite aim, — that of remedying 
actual defects which are known to exist and not some fan- 
cied deficiencies which are thought to prevail, — and (3) 
to evaluate different methods of instruction. 

Method of Approach to the Problem. 

In order to attack this problem of the pedagogy of read- 
ing in a manner most favorable to progress, the method of 
approach must involve three distinct lines of investigation. 

(i) Studies in educational psychology have been made in 
large numbers and the results of these studies throw great 
light on many problems of teaching, especially in indicating 
the lines along which the most efficient and economical 
learning is likely to take place. The psychology of reading 
already has been a subject of study by a considerable group 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 5 

of investigators and there is at hand a respectable body of 
facts in this field which are of great value to the student of 
experimental pedagogy. The first important step is a 
study of those fundamental and significant facts of the 
physiology and psychology of reading which throw light 
upon the processes involved in the act of reading. 

(2) From a study of all the known facts at hand in this 
field, certain hypotheses in regard to the method of proce- 
dure in instruction may be established. These hypotheses 
will be in the form of tentative principles of teaching. 
When they have been formulated we may proceed to teach 
reading in accordance with the body of principles thus es- 
tablished. These working hypotheses, based upon the 
known laws of learning and on the nature of the mental 
processes in children, come from the most fruitful source, — 
and about the only one of great scientific value, — for it is 
universally recognized that knowledge regarding the laws 
regriant in the physical organism and predominant in the 
mental life of the child can furnish the only valid founda- 
tion for methods of teaching. In a word, on the basis of 
the data from the physiology and psychology of reading 
it is possible to develop an experimental technique of instruc- 
tion for practical use. 

(3) But even when a survey has been made of every 
known fact there is no positive assurance that the methods 
derived and the resulting educational practice are valid. 
A third step is necessary in establishing a valid scientific 
pedagogy of reading. Before we can be assured that our 
method is in accordance with correct principles it must be 
evaluated in terms of the ability of the children to read. 
As the process of evaluation proceeds, elements of efficiency 
will be found and elements of weakness will be discovered. 
A process of selection by which the former are selected and 
retained and the latter eliminated will now ensue, until 
in due time a new pedagogy of reading will be evolved 
which will be in harmony with the laws of the most eco- 
nomical learning. 

This, in brief, is the method which must be pursued in all 
school subjects to secure satisfactory advancement in the 



6 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

direction of the evolution of better methods of instruction, 
which are so imperatively needed at the present time. It 
is highly desirable that variations in the method of the 
instruction in primary reading be adopted and that sys- 
tematic measurement of the results for a period of years be 
made for the purpose of determining definitely the elements 
which are most effective in producing efficiency. This 
gradual rebuilding of educational practice is one of the 
important problems of the day as the body of significant 
facts concerning the mental processes of children and the 
nature of the learning process accumulates. The existence 
of this problem in connection with reading makes it im- 
perative that a means of measurement of the products 
and of evaluation of types of instruction be devised. 

Factors in Reading Efficiency. 

In determining reading efficiency two factors must be 
taken into consideration. In the first place, of two readers 
whose grasp of content is equally great, that one who can 
read the larger amount in a given time has greater reading 
ability. Rate of reading, then, appears to be a very im- 
portant factor. Again, of two people who can read the 
same amount in a given unit of time, that one whose 
grasp of content is greater is the better reader. In this 
case the individual who can reproduce the larger amount of 
what he has read and who can do so more correctly is 
the more efficient. The whole question of reading efficiency 
reduces to this: the reader who can read the largest amount 
in a given unit of time and whose comprehension of what he 
has read is best has the greatest reading ability. The 
two things, then, which must be accurately weighed in 
order to have a complete measure of reading ability are: 
(i) rate of reading, and (2) comprehension. 

Now, the main purpose in teaching children to read is 
the development in them of the power to get thought from 
the printed or written page. The fact that a child or a 
class has the ability to pronounce words fluently cannot 
always be taken as an indication of good reading, for it may 
not be accompanied by adequate comprehension of the 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 7 

thought. For example, a child may be obliged to spend 
an half hour to read a page in such a manner that he com- 
prehends the thought to the degree that he can reproduce 
eighty per cent of the content. Another child may be able 
to read the same page with an equally efficient under- 
standing in a few minutes. The second pupil is, of course, 
a much more efficient reader. Among school children all 
degrees of comprehension are found combined with a wide 
range of reading rates. Real efficiency demands a satis- 
factorily rapid rate of reading combined with an adequate 
power of comprehension. In the measurement of reading 
ability it is necessary to combine these two factors into a 
final measure which shall represent the total reading ability 
of a child or a class. 

A Connected Passage the Best Test. 

It is believed that the best kind of material for a read- 
ing test is a connected passage of English in the form 
of a short story, a description, a piece of exposition or 
some similar kind of writing, in which the child's ability 
to react to the whole selection, or so much of it as he can read 
in the time given, is tested. To read, as the term is used 
in this bulletin, is held to mean the ability to interpret and 
remember the thought conveyed by the symbols of the 
printed page. It involves carrying the thread of the story 
or argument or description, grasping the essentials or gist of 
it, sensing the significance of the whole, retaining it in mind 
in a well organized form, with the ideas in rational sequence, 
after reading. According to our conception only this is real 
reading. Ability to read and ability to study are, then, 
synonymous terms and effective reading implies the ability 
to reproduce what has been read. It is for this reason that 
only a connected passage seems to be a satisfactory reading 
test. The measure of the child's ability to read used in this 
bulletin is his power to apprehend and reproduce in writing 
the thought of a simple story. 

It is planned to give other tests in which the test mate- 
rial shall consist of subject matter from geography, history, 
science and other similar material. 



8 bureau of research. 

Preliminary Nature of This Plan. 

The method of measuring reading abiHty described in 
this bulletin is not intended to be a final and best method. 
It is tentative, provisional and suggestive. About 12,000 
children in all grades from the third to the end of the high 
school have been tested by this method and the Bureau is 
now at work on the reduction of the results which are soon 
to be published in the form of an extended study of reading 
abilities, involving consideration of time allotments in 
relation to efficiency, a comparison of different methods, 
correlations between speed and comprehension and similar 
problems. Doubtless this study will reveal defects and 
indicate necessary changes in the method. The reason for 
issuing this bulletin describing this preliminary form of the 
method of measurement of reading ability is an insistent 
demand on the part of superintendents and teachers for it 
even in this imperfect state. It is believed that it is best 
to proceed at once with the measurement of school results 
with such crude methods as can be devised at the present 
time instead of delaying until a final and entirely satis- 
factory technique of measurement can be developed. 
Without doubt we shall in this way sooner secure satisfac- 
tory plans of testing the work of the school. 

This bulletin is merely a description of the method of 
testing and not a survey of results. Typical cases are 
described only for purposes of illustration. 

Description of Test. 

The reading test described in this bulletin has been con- 
structed for use in all grades above the second for the 
purpose of measuring ability in silent reading and it has 
also been given to high school pupils in each of the four years. 

The plan of the test is that the children shall be given 
a certain specified time in which to read silently, after 
which they shall be required to reproduce in writing as 
much as they can remember of what they have read. With 
the data thus gained it is possible to score the different 
elements of their reading ability. 

The thought of the selection used for the test has been 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 9 

condensed into a series of short statements called the key. 
Each point in the key is intended to express the essential 
idea contained in a certain section of the test. The key as 
a whole is intended to express the main thought, the gist, 
the thread of the story of the original. It is intended to 
be such a reproduction of the content of the test as would 
represent a degree of comprehension worthy of being scored 
as perfect, asfarasthe correctness of the thought is concerned, 
although no child would reproduce it in just this form. 
This key is used as a means by which to score the child's 
written reproduction with the object of finding out how well 
he has grasped the essential ideas of the story, or in other 
words, carried the thread of the story. After the test has 
been given, it is possible to determine the amount which 
the child has read by counting the number of words, and 
how well he has reproduced the thought by comparing his 
reproduction with the key. 

On the back of each test paper is printed the following 
form for each child to fill out. 



Date Name 

Town or city State School. . . .Grade. . . . 

Age : years months 

Name of teacher 

This is my year in school 

Certain assumptions have been made in connection with 
this test which are not true in an exact sense but which are 
sufficiently close approximations to give results which are 
accurate enough to be of great value. It has been assumed 
that the test used is of uniform difficulty throughout and 
that to reproduce the thought represented by any point 
of the key is the same as to reproduce that of any other. 
When the different sections of the selection corresponding 
to the various points of the key have been evaluated by 
approved statistical methods, results which are slightly more 
accurate can be secured. 



lo bureau of research. 

The Test. 
Reading Test No. i. 

THE LONG SLIDE. 

The boys and girls who live in a certain part of a 
small town in the country several miles from any vil- 
lage attend school in a little red schoolhouse known 
as the Long Hill school. 

It has this name because it is situated on the top of 
a very long, steep hill. Ever since anyone can re- 
member, the scholars of the Long Hill school have 
always had time to slide down the hill just once at 
recess in w;inter and get back to the schoolhouse before 
the bell rings to call them back again into school. 
They can go down very rapidly, but it takes a long 
time to walk back. 

Last Monday morning Frank Lane appeared at 
school with a fine, new sled. It was a double-runner 
which his uncle, who owns a carriage factory in the 
city, had given him. He named his new sled the 
Simoon and almost had a fight with Tom Smith, who 
said it was foolish to put such a name on a sled, but 
he kept on calling it the Simoon. 

At recess that day Frank invited the whole school 
to go for a coast and the twelve boys and girls got 
onto the sled and away they went down the steep 
hill. When recess was over. Miss Black, the teacher, 
rang the bell but not a scholar appeared. Thinking 
that the children had stopped to play on the way back 
from their slide, Miss Black went to the door and 
looked down the hill and rang the bell again. But 
not a scholar was in sight. Then she was greatly 
astonished and began to be very angry, for nothing 
like this had ever happened in all of her twenty-eight 
years as a teacher. She waited and waited, but still 
no scholars appeared. She stopped every team that 
came up the hill, but no one had seen anything of 
them. 

She stayed at the schoolhouse and wondered what 
had become of her children until it was time to let 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. II 

out school and then she went over to John Reed's, 
who lives nearest to the schoolhouse and whose son 
and daughter were among the missing scholars. Mr. 
Reed was greatly frightened at what Miss Black told 
him about the disappearance of her school and im- 
mediately hitched up his horse to go in search of the 
lost children. Just as he was driving out of the door- 
yard, the scholars appeared far down the hill. It was 
almost dark before they got back to the schoolhouse. 

Frank Lane, who was the largest boy in the school 
and the owner of the Simoon, had to explain to Miss 
Black the cause of their absence. At the foot of the 
hill there was a road broken through the field to a 
logging road which ran down through a swamp to a 
stream. When they reached the foot of the hill, 
Frank steered the Simoon into the road which led 
through the field. The Simoon ran so easily over the 
frozen snow that it took the children clear through to 
the logging road. This had been sprinkled with water 
and had frozen hard the night before and ran down 
hill. When the Simoon struck this road it kept on 
going faster and faster and Frank was unable to stop 
it. When it reached the stream, which was covered 
with smooth ice, it went even faster and kept on going 
until it had gone clear down to Rand's mill, which was 
three miles from the schoolhouse, Frank told Miss 
Black about their long slide and said that he did not 
intend to run away with the whole school, but he 
could not stop the sled. He explained that they came 
back as quickly as they could, but the road was so 
slippery that they had to haul the girls and some of 
the small boys and that for this reason it took a long 
time to get back. He said that he hoped the teacher 
would consider it an accident. 

Frank does not know yet what is going to happen to 
him, but he can bear up under quite a severe punish- 
ment, for Edward Post has been telling for the last 
ten years about the long slide he made once on Long 
Hill. But Frank's slide was a mile and a half longer 
than Edward's. Ever since that day no one has 
dared to take even a short coast at recess. 



12 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



THE KEY. 

1. Some children in the country attend school. 

2. The schoolhouse is known as the Long Hill School. 

3. // is situated on top of a long hill. 

4. The pupils slide down hill once at recess in winter. 

5. One day a hoy brought to school a new sled. 

6. His uncle had given it to him. 

7. He named it the Simoon. 

8. He almost had a fight with another boy. 

9. This boy said the name was foolish. 
ID. At recess the pupils went for a slide. 

11. At the end of recess no pupils appeared. 

12. The teacher was astonished and angry. 

13. Nothing like this had ever happened before. 

14. After a long wait no scholars appeared. 

15. No one in passing teams had seen her school. 

16. She stayed at school until closing time. 

17. Then she went to the nearest neighbor. 

18. iJw children were among the scholars. 

19. iJe waj greatly frightened. 

20. iJe started to search for the children. 

21. Just then they appeared down the hill. 

22. They reached the schoolhouse just before dark. 

23. The owner of the .y/e^ explained their absence. 

24. /!/ the foot of the hill was a road through a field. 

25. It led to a logging road. 

26. This ran down to a stream. 

27. He turned into the road through the field. 

28. The frozen snow made it impossible to stop. 

29. On the stream the sled went faster. 

30. It went three miles from the schoolhouse. 

3 1 . He did not intend to run away. 

32. They came back as quickly as possible. 

33. They had to haul some of the children. 

34. Therefore it took a long time. 

35. He hoped the teacher would consider it an accident. 

36. He does not know what will happen to him. 

37. He can bear a severe punishment. 

38. Another long slide has been talked about for years. 

39. His was a mile and a half longer. 

40. No one has coasted at recess since that day. 



the measurement of ability to read. 1 3 

Directions for Giving the Test. 

The most convenient form for arranging the selection, 
when it is printed for a test, is to have it arranged as a folder 
in the form of the two pages of an open book as it appears 
when it lies before the child on the top of his desk. The 
test will make just about two pages if the length of the lines 
and the size of type conform to the requirements of a cor- 
rectly printed reading book for third or fourth grade. 

The test papers should be given out to the children on 
the tops of their desks, with the printed side down. Each 
child should then fill out the blank on the back of his 
folder. It should be in such a position on the desk that 
the end which has the blanks is at the child's left hand. 
They should take hold of the folders with the thumb and 
finger of the right hand, and when the time comes to 
turn the papers over to read, they should do so by a quick 
movement of the hand to the left. The object is to get the 
paper turned over quickly at the signal and have it in the 
right position to begin reading. 

The directions to the children before turning their papers 
should be given and talked over until it is certain that every 
child understands them. The examiner should explain to 
the children that they are not to take an examination and 
that nothing in the way of rank depends upon this test, in 
order that they may recover from any nervousness due to 
having a stranger come into the room. They should be 
told, however, that it is desired that they do their best with 
the test but it is best not to use the word test, especially 
with the younger children. The examiner should talk with 
the children for a few minutes until they are at ease and 
have recovered from their embarrassment. 

He should explain to them that the papers which they 
have on their desks have an interesting story on the other 
side and that he is to give a signal soon at which they are 
to turn the papers over and read as much of the story as 
they can in the time given. It is well to tell them that the 
time for reading will be rather short and that they are to 
read as much as they can in the time allowed, but that they 
are to strive to understand and remember what is read as 



14 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

well as possible. In other words, they are not to read so 
rapidly as not to remember what they read, nor are they to 
read too slowly. The idea is, in a word, that they shall 
read as much as possible in the time given and at the same 
time read carefully enough to be able to reproduce the 
essentials of the story after it is read. The examiner will 
need to take plenty of time to make it clear to the children 
what is desired of them. Experience with about twelve 
thousand children indicates that it is not difficult to make 
them understand and follow these directions. 

The proper procedure in giving the test is to give a signal 
by saying "Start," at which the children turn their papers 
over and begin to read silently. At a second signal, which 
is given by saying "Stop," each child promptly stops 
reading, draws a circle around the word at which he left 
off and immediately turns his paper over. 

When the proper explanations have been made the signal 
should be given to start. At the end of exactly one minute 
the signal to cease reading should be given. The papers 
ought to be collected immediately. The children will then 
be asked to write all they can remember of the story. For 
this they may be allowed all the time they need. 

The Scoring of the Papers. 

Data are now at hand for the determination of each 
child's score in the two factors in reading ability. 

(i) The rate of reading should be first found by counting 
the number of words read by each child. This should be 
expressed in words per second. 

(2) In the determination of comprehension two elements 
should be taken into consideration, which have been called 
(a) the quantity of reproduction and (b) the quality of 
reproduction, (a) Each child's written paper should be 
carefully examined and the number of the points in the 
key which are reproduced by him should be determined and 
expressed as a percentage of the total number in the por- 
tion of the selection which he read. For example, in the 
part read by a certain child there may have been twenty 
points and he may have reproduced five of these. The 
amount reproduced was, therefore, twenty-five per cent of 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 1 5 

what he read. This is called quantity of reproduction. 
In ascertaining the number of ideas reproduced by each 
child to get the measure of quantity, every idea should be 
counted which in most respects is complete and in general 
correctly stated, even though some of the less important 
details are lacking, (b) The reproductions should be ex- 
amined a second time and only those ideas counted which are 
entirely correct in every respect and of which every detail 
is reproduced. This is called quality of reproduction. 

To give credit for quantity in the case of any point all 
elements of the idea expressed by the words in italics in the 
key must be in the child's reproduction, either expressed or 
plainly implied. 

The chief advantage of scoring the child's reading ability 
for both quantity and quality lies in the possibilities of 
diagnosing individual deficiencies which are thus afforded. 
This will be pointed out later. 

But a measure of rate of reading and comprehension 
taken separately will not prove satisfactory. One child 
may have a high reading rate, and a low comprehension. 
A second child may have a low reading rate, and a high 
comprehension. It may be difificult to determine the exact 
difference in ability in such a case. For example, suppose 
the averages of one grade are : 

Rate of reading, 2.16 words per second. 

Comprehension, 47.62. 
Let the averages for another grade be: 

Rate of reading, 3.19 words per second. 

Comprehension, 3 1 . 1 1 . 
It is difficult to say at a glance just how much more reading 
ability one has than the other. It is necessary that some 
unit of measurement be established by which the total 
reading efficiency of an individual or a class may be ex- 
pressed in a single figure. 

Such a unit was arbitrarily established and was defined 
as follows. One unit of reading efficiency is a reading abil- 
ity in which such a rate of reading in words per second is 
combined with such a power of reproduction that the prod- 
uct of the number representing the rate and that represent- 
ing the comprehension is unity. A person who can read at 



l6 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

the rate of 0.5 words per second and whose comprehension 
is 2 has I unit of reading efficiency. A reading rate of 0.25 
words per second combined with a comprehension of 4 would 
also represent the same unit, as would many other variations 
of the two factors. In this computation the percentage of 
comprehension, as, for example, 41.15 per cent, is regarded 
as the number 41.15 and is multiplied by the rate. If the 
rate in this case was 2.15 words per second, the number of 
reading units would be the product of these two, or 88.47. 
This gives us a crude unit by which reading efficiency may 
be expressed in a comprehensible form. There is, of course, 
no mathematical relation between these figures. This unit 
is adopted purely arbitrarily as a rough but convenient 
means of expressing reading power in definite comparable 
units. Any child's reading efficiency may be found by 
taking the product of the number representing reading 
rate and that representing comprehension. 

Reading material of different degrees of difficulty will be 
found, however, and an individual who has the ability to 
read at a certain rate and reproduce a certain percentage 
of what he has read in one selection may not have the same 
reading rate and power of reproduction in connection with 
matter twice as hard. The unit of reading efficiency must 
always be spoken of in connection with material of a certain 
degree of difficulty. The use of this unit is wholly for 
purposes of comparing child with child, grade with grade or 
school with school when the same test material has been 
used. 

A good method of procedure in scoring the papers is to 
place the key and the child's reproduction side by side on 
a table. The first point in the key should be examined and 
then the child's reproduction should be carefully scrutinized 
to see if it contains a correct statement of the thought of the 
point. It should be borne in mind that the child's language 
may be entirely different from the wording of the idea in 
the key. The purpose of the one scoring the paper should 
be to see if that idea is expressed in the child's own language 
or sufficiently plainly implied by what he has written, with 
sufficient completeness and accuracy to be credited for 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. IJ 

quantity. If so, it should be scored. All of the points 
should be considered in the same manner. Each point should 
next be examined with reference to quality and scored if it 
meets the requirements. When the entire paper has been 
scored, the number of points scored for quantity and the 
number for quality should be counted and each expressed 
as a percentage of the total number in the portion of the 
selection read by the particular child in question. The aver- 
age of quan4:ity and quality should be taken as the measure 
of the child's comprehension. 

The scorer must use the best of judgment in determining 
whether to give credit for any point. Everything which the 
child says in any way related to the idea in question should 
be considered, and if it seems from his language that he has 
the idea with the required degree of completeness and 
correctness in the case of either quantity or quaHty it 
should be credited. 

The reason for getting comprehension by the method 
used is as follows. Many children will reproduce a good 
many ideas with some inaccuracy and some omissions. 
They should have some credit for this but less than full 
credit to the extent that their reproduction is incorrect 
and inaccurate. It is beheved, after scoring about twelve 
thousand papers in this manner, that, by getting quantity 
and quality of reproduction by this method and averaging 
them, a very fair estimate of the child's comprehension is 
secured. Quality serves as a check on quantity and reduces 
the child's mark for comprehension in proportion as his 
work is inaccurate and incomplete. 

Records and Tabulation of Data. 

It is very important, after the tests have been given, to 
get from the results all the significant information which 
they contain. For that reason certain tabulations of the 
data are advised and it is also recommended that the 
records of each test be filed permanently for purposes of 
comparison with the results of future tests. Six blanks, 
called Forms A, B, C, D, E, and F indicate the data which 
should be secured at the time of each test. 



1 8 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

On Form A the records of all the individual pupils should 
be entered at the time of each test, together with their 
names and ages. On Form B should be given a summary 
of the data found on Form A. Directly after the column 
in which the rates of reading are entered on Form A is 
found a column called Deviation, and on Form B space is 
given for entering average deviation and variability. These 
should be computed in connection with each reading test. 

It has been pointed out by various writers that an 
average is not a truly representative measure. For ex- 
ample, two grades may have the same average or median 
rate of reading but the individuals may vary widely from 
this central tendency in one case and may be grouped 
closely around it in the other. The average deviation of 
the grade gives the average amount of this variability, but it 
is impossible to compare the variability of two grades, when 
the averages are different, by merely referring to the average 
deviation. For this reason, the variability should be given. 
This may be found by expressing the average deviation 
from the average as a percentage of the average. If the 
median is used, instead of the average, the process is the 
same. Thus one grade with a comprehension of 40 may 
have an average deviation of 8, and another grade with the 
same comprehension may have an average deviation of 17. 
This means that the former class is very much better 
graded than the latter. Again, if we have two grades with 
a comprehension of 50 and 80 respectively and the average 
deviation in both grades is 12, in the case of the first the 
variability is 24 per cent and in the case of the second it 
is 15 per cent. For these reasons, in the case of rate of 
reading, comprehension and reading efficiency, as called for 
on Form A, it will be necessary to determine the deviation 
of each pupil's score from the central tendency, which may 
be either average or median. 

Nothing less than a complete table of frequencies gives 
a complete statement of the facts concerning any grade. 
For this reason Forms C, D and E should be used. 

The information called for on Form F, if gathered faith- 
fully for a number of years, in connection with the results 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



19 



Q O 



Q 

O 
U 
W 

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5 
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a; 



o 

gp4 

«^ 
,0 w 








Q 


c 





















i 


































Devia- 
tion 




























Compre- 
hension 




























Quality 
of Repro- 
duction 




























Quantity 
of Repro- 
duction 




























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Q 


























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20 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



Town- 



READING RECORD 

Form B 

Summary of Grade Records 

Date of Test- 



School- 
















Grade 


No. 

of 

Pupils 


Average 
Age 


Measure 


Rate of 
Reading 


Compre- 
hension 


Reading 




Yr. 


Mo. 


Efficiency 


III 








Highest 










Lowest 










Average* 










Average 
Deviation 










Variability 









IV 








Highest 










Lowest 










Average 










Average 
Deviation 










Variability 








\' 








Highest 










Lowest 










Average 










Average 
Deviation 










Variability 









* In place of average median may be used if it is preferred. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 21 

READING RECORD— Concluded 





No. 

of 

Pupils 


Average 
Age 


Measure 


Rate of 
Reading 


Compre- 
hension 


Reading 




Yr. 


Mo. 


Efficiency 


VI 








Highest 










Lowest 










Average 










Average 
Deviation 










Variability 









VII 



Highest 



Lowest 



Average 



Average 
Deviation 



Variability 



VIII 








Highest 










Lowest 










Average 










Average 
Deviation 










Variability 








Av.for 
entire 
school 

















22 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



Town— 
School- 



READING RECORD 

Form C 

Table of Frequencies — For Rate of Reading 

Date of Test — 

Grade 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Rate of Reading) 


I 


o - .499 


3 


•5 - -999 


8 


I - 1.499 


13 


1.5 - 1.999 


15 


2 - 2.499 


Etc. 


Etc. 



















































































THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



23 



READING RECORD 

Form D 

Table of Frequencies — For Comprehension 



Town - 






Date of Test 




School- 










Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 




Quantity 
(Comprehension) 






2 




- 4.99 




7 




5 - 9-99 


13 


10 - 14.99 


Etc. 


Etc. 



























































































24 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



READING RECORD 

Form E 

Table of Frequencies — For Reading Efficiency 

Town Date of Test 

School Grade 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Reading Efficiency) 


3 


o - 19.99 


12 


20 - 39.99 


14 


40 - 59.99 


i8 


60 - 79.99 


Etc. 


Etc. 



















































































THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



25 



Town— 
School- 



READING RECORD 

Form F 

Annual School Report 

Dates of Tests, i 
2 
3 





I. 


II. 


III. 


I\'. 


I. Total number of minutes per week devoted to class read 
ing in each reading class, including word or phonetic 
drill 







— 




2. Approximate amount of phonetic drill in minutes per wee! 












I. 


II. 


III. 


IV. 


V. 


VI. 


VII. 


VIII. 


3. Number of books read for class 
reading by each grade this 























4. Average number of books read 
by each grade for silent read- 
ing this year 














(Include here all reading 
done by pupils outside of 
class, in school or out. If 
records have not been kept 
give an estimate.) 




5. What proportion of the class 
reading in each ^rade was at 
sight? 






















6. Average age of the classes 
tested at time of each 
test 


I 
























2 




















3 



















7. What system of reading, 'f any, is used in primary grades? 



8. In what respect is this system modified, i. e., in what particulars does the method 
differ from the directions given in the printed manual of the system? (Be specific 
and go into detail in your answer, using additional sheets if necessary.) 



9. If no standard system of reading is used give a detailed description of the method 
used in the first four grades, using additional sheets if necessary. 



26 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



O 

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Suipsa^ 


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JO 3;bh 


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guipBa^i 




Ill 


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noisuaq 


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XDuapiyg 


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THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



27 



Town- 
Year- 



READING RECORD 
Form H 
Record of Reading Done 
School 



Grade- 



How many of the books read in class were read at sight? 



No. 


Children. 


Number of 

Books Read 

for Class 

Reading. 


Number of 

Books Read 

Outside of Class 

for Silent 

Reading.* 


I 








2 








3 








4 








5 








6 








7 








8 








9 








10 








II 








12 








13 








14 








15 








16 








17 








18 








19 








20 








21 








22 








23 








24 








25 









* Include here all books read during the year for silent reading in school ai\d out. 



28 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

of the tests of reading efficiency tabulated on Forms A, B, 
C, D and E, would be of the greatest value. The results of 
modifications of method, such as variations in the amount 
of reading done in class and for silent reading, the time 
allotment to the subject, and the amount of phonetic drill, 
could easily be ascertained. Forms A, B, C, D, E and G 
should be filled out after each test, and Form F at the end 
of the year. 

It will be found very desirable to keep a record of the 
facts called for in Form H also. 

Diagnosis of Class and Individual Needs 

In Table i are given, for purposes of illustration, the data 
from an actual third grade. This grade stood second 
among thirteen third grades which were tested and repre- 
sents a somewhat satisfactory efficiency. Examination of 
the averages shows that the rate of reading, the compre- 
hension and the reading ability of the class as a whole are 
high. The rate of reading is seen to be very high. 

It is possible from the data given in Tables i, 2, 3, 4 and 
5 and the graphs presented in Figs, i, 2, 3 and 4 to get an 
accurate picture of the condition of the class. Fig. i 
shows the reading rate, and it appears that there is a varia- 
tion from 1.28 words per second to 6.02. This is a larger 
variation than ought to exist in a grade but no larger than 
that usually found. The average comprehension of the 
class is 40, which is high, and the reading efficiency, which 
is 114.79, is high. We find individual variations in com- 
prehension and reading efficiency, but these are not nearly 
so great as in most of the classes thus far tested. In fact, 
it can be said that the class is in a rather satisfactory condi- 
tion in this respect. While the rate of reading is high, 
there are, however, ten pupils whose rate is considerably 
below the average of the class. They should be given 
special quick perception practice daily to bring their rate 
of reading up to a higher standard. There are ten pupils 
whose comprehension falls considerably below the average 
of the class, four of whom fall conspicuously low and can 
easily be identified in Fig. 2. They need special practice in 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



29 



W 



H r^ 



Q O 






H CO 



.2 c 


t^o\r^cM t^roONC^ (N 1-1 rocs r^^^ON looo m oo ^ O "■> 


OS 

ro 




00 roi-i MOOOO^ r0-^0>0 CT^fO i/:>00 'O t^\0 CS 00 IC O 
1 1 + 1 1 + 1 ++ 1 + 1 1 1 1 1 +++++ 1 


■-3.2 


OOIOOOOOO'+OOOOVOOO^^O^OOOOO 
000 uOiOO MOO OvO i-i "OO rOOO (N ^O ON>0 -^oo 0< 


ON 

1— ( 


mD ^ ro^ ro t^oo CT» ^ M 10 M 0^ lOOO f^ O t^ CO CT^ ■^ 
0\^ 1-iOOOvOt^cOi-iON COO lOvO cO O 00 (N cO CO '^00 




10 CM CO • 1^00 '^ -^00 cooo os:^iO'X)oo m vo 

CO MM- to wi-H mOi-iO) i-h i-iCS(M 

+ 1 ++ ;+ 1 ++ 1 + 1 1 1 1 1 + 1 1 1 + 1 


ID 


a.2 

as 

<u 


"000 CO cooo ovO'*c4t^cMi-icoioc)<sa\0'^ 

t^cOO iOtM^coiOiOcO-^O i-i CM i-h cOUOcOcOCMvO 1-1 





Quality 
of Repro- 
duction 


10 ■OOOOcOCOcOO\'*i-iO« -CMO t^OO 00 w 
t^-iOCSCNvOcocOcOCS'd-i-iOi-' •CS'^CMM low 




Quantity 
of Repro- 
duction 


miOiOO Cocor^co-^COCOCOCM rfOO lOO 0\t^ 
t^ 1^ t^OO CO COOO .^-^COCOCOCM •^t-^co-^ 100 w 




.2 c 
> 


Ost^CM CM ■^i-i OCTn'tI-OvOn t^oo On >-i T) 1-1 CO cO^O lO 
t^ ■* CS O^ t~» t^\0 O-^OOOOi-iNCMt^CMiOt^ON 



On 




Mwi-Hi-i wi-iC>tCM 
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ++ + + + + + -f-}- 


°.s 


00 »0 t^ 10 COVO 00 00 cooo 00 100 00 CM 00 CO CV( 
CNOOO 1-1 cococo COVO ONOOi-iCMCMCOt^ COO 00 O 


CO 


i_MHH<S(MCMC4CMCMCM(NCMcOcOcOcOCOCOrl-Tf lOO 


0) 
< 


6 






> 






6 

nj 




bO 
oj 
u 
(U 

> 
< 


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6 
7- 


M CM C0"^>r)0 t^OO ON 1-1 CM CO "+ IDO t>.00 0\ 1-1 CM 

„_HHM«MWWWh-lCMCMCM 





30 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



Town X 
School A 



TABLE 2 « 

Form B 
Summary of Grade Record 

Date of Test, June 4, 1915 



Grade 


No. 

of 

Pupils 


Average 
Age 


Measure 


Rate of 
Reading 


Compre- 
hension 


Reading 
Efificiency 




Yr. 


Mo. 


III 


22 


9 


6 


Highest 


6.02 


75 


349-80 




Lowest 


1.28 


1 1 


35-86 




Average 


307 


40 


114-79 




Average 
Deviation 


0.90 


15 


40-39 




Variability 


29-3% 


37-5% 


35-18% 



TABLE 3 

Form C 

Table of Frequencies — For Rate of Reading 

Town X Date of Test, June 4, 191 5 

School A Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Rate of Reading) 





- .49 





•5 - -99 


I 


I - 1.49 


2 


1-5 - 1-99 


6 


2 -2.49 


3 


2.5 - 2.99 


5 


3 -3-49 


I 


3-5 - 3-99 


I 


4 - 4-49 


I 


4-5 - 4-99 





5 - 5-49 


I" 


5-5-5-99 


I 


6 - 6.49 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



31 



TABLE 4 
Table of Frequencies — For Comprehension 
Town X Date of Test, June 4, 191 5 

School A Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Comprehension) 








-4-99 


2 


ID 


- 149 


I 


15 


- 19-9 


2 


20 


- 24.9 


I 


25 


- 29.9 


4 


30 


- 34-9 


2 


35 


- 39-9 


2 


40 


- 44-9 





45 


- 49-9 


2 


50 


- 54-9 


2 


55 


- 59-9 


2 


60 


- 64.9 





65 


- 69.9 


I 


70 


- 74-9 


I 


75 


- 79 9 



rapid silent reading with special emphasis upon getting a 
maximum of content from what is read. The four who 
get the lowest marks in comprehension are seen on Fig. 3 
to have a very low score for reading efficiency. 

In Table 2 only the average scores are given. Tables 3, 
4 and 5 illustrate the method of expressing the scores in 
terms of their frequencies and show the same facts as Figs. 
I, 2 and 3. Fig. 4 expresses the facts of Table 5 in the form 
of a surface of frequency. 

We may now examine a number of individual cases. It 
is easy to see that Pupil No. i is deficient in the rate at 



32 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



TABLE 5 

Form E 

Table of Frequencies — For Reading Efficiency 

Town X Date of Test, June 4, 1915 

School A Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Reading Efficiency) 










- 199 


I 


20 


- 39-9 


I 


40 


- 59-9 




4 


60 


- 79-9 


4 


80 


- 99-9 


4 


100 


- 119. 9 


3 


120 


- 139-9 





140 


- 159 -9 


I 


160 


- 179-9 


I 


180 


- 199 9 





200 


- 219.9 





220 


- 239.9 





240 


- 259-9 







260 


- 2799 







280 


- 299.9 







300 


- 319 9 





320 


- 339-9 


I 


340 


- 359-9 



which he can read. He gets a relatively large proportion of 
the content at his present rate of reading but he reads so 
little in a unit of time that his efftciency is low. He should 
have practice to increase his speed, and if it is found that at 
a higher rate of reading his comprehension is poor he should 
be given practice for the purpose of bringing about improve- 
ment along this line, also. Pupil No. 2 has a difiliculty which 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



33 



is easy to diagnose. In the first place his rate of reading is 
not sufficiently rapid, but on quantity of reproduction he 
stands high. His mark for quality, on the other hand, falls 
to zero. In other words, he gets a good many ideas in the 
rough but gets nothing accurately. We see in the case of 




9 10 II 12 13 14 IS 16 17 

Fig. I — Curve representing the rate of reading in a third grade of 
22 pupils, School A. The scale along the base of the figure represents 
the numbers of the children in the grade. The scale at the left shows 
the rate of reading in words per second. The papers were arranged in 
the order of rate of reading. 

this pupil one advantage of the method of scoring reading 
ability advocated in this bulletin. It enables us to find 
more correctly the exact location of defects in the reading 
ability of individual children. What this pupil gets is a 
mere smattering of the idea. His low mark for compre- 
hension, together with his low rate of reading, gives him a 
3 



34 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



low efficiency. He needs to work both for speed and for 
accuracy. Pupil No. 4 reads at a rate considerably below 
the average. He gets in a rather rough way a very large 




I 234 s 6 7 8 9 10 II 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 

Fig. 2 — Curve representing comprehension of the same children as 
in Fig. I and in the same order. The scale at the left shows the compre- 
hension. 

percentage of the ideas, but he is very inaccurate. He 
merely skims what he reads. He is in need of the same 
treatment as Pupil No. 2. The same difficulty exists in 
the case of Pupil No. 8. Pupil No. 13 reads reasonably 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



35 



rapidly but remembers little of what he reads, and gets 
nothing absolutely correctly. The same is true of Pupil No. 



450 m 



100 * 




I 2 3 4 S 6 7 8 9 10 II 12 13 14 IS i6 17 i8 19 20 21 22 23 24 

Fig. 3 — Curve representing the reading efficiency of the same chil- 
dren as in Figs, i and 2, and arranged in the same order. The scale at 
the left shows the reading efficiency. 

15. An interesting comparison may be made in the case of 
Pupils No. 21 and No. 22. Both read with great rapidity. 
Pupil No. 21 remembers a large amount of what he reads 



36 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



and remembers it accurately. On account of this and his 
high rate of reading he stands the highest in the class in 
efficiency. Just the reverse is true of Pupil No. 22. While 
he covers a great deal of ground, he gets almost nothing 
out of it. 

A pupil like No. 21 is so superior to the rest of the class 
that probably he profits little or nothing from the daily 
routine reading lesson. Such children should be removed 
from the reading class at once, for they need no more drill 
in reading as such. The ordinary daily exercises in oral 
reading, as usually conducted, would amount for such pupils 
to daily practice in slowing down their rate of reading. 



4 « 



20406080100 200 300 400 500 600 

Fig. 4 — Surface of frequency showing the distribution of reading 
efficiency in the same third grade as in Figs, i, 2 and 3. The scale 
along the base of the figure represents the reading efficiency. The scale 
at the left shows the number of children in each group. Fig. 4 expresses 
the facts of Table 5. 



Probably Pupils No. 6 and No. 17 cannot receive maximum 
profit from reading with this class. These three pupils can 
easily be identified in Fig. 4 on the upper part of the scale 
above the majority of the class and by the three conspicu- 
ously high points in the curve in Fig. 3. It is doubtful, also, 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 37 

whether Pupils No. 13 and No. 15 belong in this class. 
Reading material and instruction adapted to the average 
of the class would hardly be suited to their needs. These 
two pupils may be easily identified in the two lowest points 
of the curves in Figs 2 and 3 and also on the lower end of the 
scale in Fig. 4. 

An examination of Fig. 4 reveals, ^n the whole, a very 
satisfactory condition. With the exception of five pupils, 
No. 6, No. 17 and No. 21 on the upper side of the scale and 
No. 13 and 15 on the lower, the group is homogeneous 
and compact, which is a favorable condition for teaching. 
While four of these five pupils would undoubtedly do better 
in a class more nearly of their own ability, yet they do not 
differ so greatly from the average of the class as to fail 
entirely to profit from the instruction. 

This is intended to illustrate the method by which indi- 
vidual pupils may be selected and their particular deficien- 
cies studied. It is not intended to be an exhaustive study 
of the class. There is no doubt that by a study of the scores 
of the different individual pupils in the various elements of 
reading ability given in Table i and the application of the 
proper remedial measures in each case, the total efficiency 
of the class could be raised very much higher than it is at 
the present time. 

Comparison of One School with Another. 

For purposes of comparison the data from School B are 
presented. School A represented a rather satisfactory con- 
dition, but School B, on the other hand, represents condi- 
tions which in many respects are undesirable, and, had the 
proper measures for remedying the various defects been 
applied, the present deficiencies would not prevail to the 
extent to which they are found. Tables 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 



38 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



d u 



VO 






'^ w 



ei 



fQ 






> o 




ON 


1 1 1 i 1 1 + 1 1 ++ 1 + 1 1 1 1 +++ 1 ++ 




■ ■ v£) O ■ O^^O O -OOOOiO-iO-OCSOiOOO 

■ • 00 O • t^ 1-1 O • looo oooo -O -lOtNor^Oio 






.2 c 
> o 


1 1 1 + 1 1 ++ 1 ++ 1 + 1 1 1 1 +++ 1 ++ 




i C 
a.2 

o « 


. . M \o • ►- VO lO • lOOO 1-1 lO 1-1 • i-i IT) ro^ (N f^ t^ 




Quality 
of Repro- 
duction 


fOCO-iO»OiiO- ■ • IDIOOOOO 

cO<^-CSt^-P4 • ■ • ■NM'+i-ivO^ 




Quantity 
of Repro- 
duction 


• -rOO -COOVO -t^ONt^CN -PI -r^ lOOO Ti-00 Ov 




> o 

0)-- 

Q 


lO lO lO lO r0>0 ^ fOOO vO r^t^J^N <M N <S N lO^J-rH^Ov 
"000000 t^iOiOiOTfCN HH 1-1 « T^Tf^Tj-rh tn\o vO t^ t^ 


5 


T 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 +++++++++++++ 


Rate of 
Reading 


00000000 O t^t^O lOI^O O O I0i0i0>0 lOOO l^ f^ o <s 
C) ID lO lO J^OO 00 ONOvi-i^vOvOOOOOOOOOOO a\ O O CS <S 


fo 


HHi-ll-ll-ll-ll-ll-ll-ll-ll-l(M0<5SfO 


bo 
< 


6 












s 




Si 

< 


; 


6 


1-1 P) CO ■+ 10>0 t^OO 0\ O « (S fO'^iOvO t^OO 0\ O >-i N m 
►H(-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-il-il-li-iC<MNN 





THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



39 



Town Y 
School B 



TABLE 7 

Form B 

Summary of Grade Record 

Date of Test, June 4, 19 15 



Grade 


No. 

of 

Pupils 


Average 
Age 


Measure 


Rate of 
Reading 


Compre- 
hension 


Reading 
Efficiency 


Yr. 


Mo. 


III 


23 


ID 





Highest 


3.22 


88 


241.50 




Lowest 


.28 


00 


00 




Average 


1-43 


32 


54 23 




Average 
Deviation 


.60 


25 


46.94 




Variability 


42% 


78.1% 


88 . 16% 



TABLE 8 

Form C 

Table of Frequencies — For Rate of Reading 

Town Y Date of Test, June 4, 1915 

School B Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Rate of Reading) 


I 


- .499 


8 


•5 - -999 


I 


I - 1.499 


9 


1.5 - 1.999 


3 


2 - 2.499 





2.5 - 2.999 


I 


3 - 3-499 



40 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



TABLE 9 

Form D 

Table of Frequencies — For Comprehension 

Town Y Date of Test June 4, 191 5 

School B Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Comprehension) 


6 


- 4.99 





5 - 9-99 


3 


ID - 14.99 


2 


15 - 19.99 





20 - 24.99 


I 


25 - 29.99 





30 - 34.99 


I 


35 - 39-99 





40 - 44.99 





45 - 49-99 


5 


50 - 54.99 





55 - 59-99 


I 


60 - 64.99 


I 


65 - 69.99 


I 


70 - 74.99 


I 


75 - 79-99 





80 - 84.99 


I 


85 - 89.99 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



41 



TABLE 10 

Form E 
Table of Frequencies — For Reading Efficiency 
Town Y Date of Test June 4, 1915 

School B Grade III 



Frequency 
(Number of Cases) 


Quantity 
(Reading Efficiency) 


8 





- 19 9 




4 


20 


- 39-9 




4 


40 


- 59-9 




I 


60 


- 79-9 




2 


80 


- 99.9 







100 


- 119 9 




I 


120 


- 1399 




2 


140 


- 159-9 







160 


- 179-9 







180 


- 199-9 







200 


- 219.9 







220 


- 239-9 




I 


240 


- 259 9 





and Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8 show the essential facts for School B. 
If we compare Table 3 with Table 8 and Fig. i with Fig. 5, 
we shall see the differences in the rate of reading. In both 
cases there is a wide range, but in the case of School B the 
rate is very low throughout, while the rate for School A is 
high. With a uniform comprehension in both cases, School 
A would rank much higher than School B. It is entirely 
clear that a majority of the pupils in School B need a great 
deal more special drill for the purpose of raising the rate of 
reading. If next we turn to Tables 4 and 9 and Figs. 2 
and 6, we shall see how the schools compare in compre- 
hension. While there is a somewhat wide variation in the 



42 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



case of School A, the individual differences in this respect 
in School B are extremely marked. This school represents 
a condition which should never be allowed to exist and 
which makes it impossible to secure the best results from 



4 • 



3 • 



19 20 21 22 23 



w 



10 II 12 13 14 IS i6 17 li 



Fig. 5 — Curve representing the rate of reading in a third grade of 
23 pupils, School B. The papers were arranged in order of rate of read- 
ing. Compare Fig, 5 with Fig. i. 



the instruction. An examination of the reading efficiencies 
in the case of the two schools, as represented in Tables 5 and 
10 and Figs. 3 and 7, reveals a very unsatisfactory efficiency 
in the case of School B. In fact, the low standing of the 
pupils in rate of reading and comprehension inevitably leads 
to a low general efficiency. It is interesting to compare the 
distributions of reading efficiency in the two schools, as 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



43 



80 « 



70 • 



60 < 



so 




I 2 3 4 5 6 .7 8 9 10 II 12 13 14 IS 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 

Fig. 6 — Curve representing comprehension in the case of the same 
children as in Fig. 5. Compare Fig. 6 with Fig. 2. Note the extreme 
variation in ability in the case of these children. 



44 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 




34567 



9 10 II 12 13 14 IS 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 



Fig. 7 — Curve representing the reading efficiency of the same chil- 
dren as in Figs. 5 and 6. Compare Fig. 7 with Fig. 3. Note the low 
reading efficiency of these children. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



45 



shown in Tables 5 and 10 and in Figs. 4 and 8. The former 
represents a much more satisfactory distribution than the 
latter. In Fig. 8 it will be noted that the mode falls in the 



n 



H 



600 



20 40 60 80 100 



Fig. 8 — Surface of frequency showing the distribution of reading 
efficiency of the same children as in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. Compare this 
surface of frequency with that in Fig. 4. Note that in Fig. 8 the mode 
falls in the lowest group. Fig. 8 shows a very unsatisfactory distribu- 
tion as compared with Fig. 4. 



lowest group — between o and 19.99 — while in School A, 
Fig. 4, it falls at a much higher point on the scale — between 
120 and 139.9. 

In Figs. 9, 10 and ii the facts in connection with a fourth 
grade of fifty-four pupils are represented. The object here 
is to show a condition which is about as unsatisfactory as 
we should expect to find, and is a good illustration of a state 
of affairs which is often found in many schools but which 
never ought to be permitted anywhere and for which there 
is no excuse. There are too many pupils in the class and 
the differences in ability are such that it is impossible to 
adapt instruction and material to the class as a whole. In 



46 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



Fig. 10 is given a surface of frequency representing the 
distribution of comprehension in this grade, and in Fig. ii 
the distribution of reading efficiency is shown. Both of 
these are highly unsatisfactory. In Fig. lo there are five 



9' 



• lll^llllllljIBp 



n 



II 12 



Fig. 9 — Surface of frequency showing the distribution in the case of 
rate of reading in a fourth grade of 54 pupils. This is an example of a 
fairly satisfactory distribution. 



distinct groups of pupils as regards comprehension. It is 
entirely impossible to adapt reading material and instruc- 
tion to the widely divergent abilities of all of these pupils. 
In Fig. 1 1 three distinct modes are seen to exist. Reading 
material which would be of a suitable grade of difficulty for 
the lowest group, in which there are twelve pupils, would be 
entirely too easy for the pupils in the group represented by 
the third mode, which represents twenty-three pupils. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 



47 



5 I 



4« 



3 * 




Fig. lo — Surface of frequency representing the distribution of com- 
prehension of the same pupils as in Fig. 9. This is an example of a 
very unsatisfactory condition. There are 5 modes. The group is not 
a compact one as regards comprehension. 



48 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



The extreme variations in ability in the different elements 
of reading efficiency in this grade are summarized in the 
statements which follow. 



9 ' 



6 • 




^^ 



2040 60 80 100 



400 



600 



Fig. 1 1 — Surface of frequency representing the distribution of read- 
ing efificiency of the same pupils as in Figs. 9 and 10. This represents 
an extremely bad condition. Note the 3 modes and the large number 
of pupils in the lowest group. 



There are six pupils in the class who are totally unable to 
read. The best reader in the grade is nearly thirty-eight 
times as efficient as the poorest. The five best readers are 
about sixteen times as competent as the five poorest. The 
twenty best readers have about nine and one half times as 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 49 

great reading ability as the twenty who have the least read- 
ing power. The fastest reader reads about sixteen times 
as rapidly as the slowest. The ten fastest readers read 
over five and one half times as rapidly as the ten slowest. 
There are six pupils in the class who failed entirely in com- 
prehension. The best pupil in the grade in comprehension 
is nearly ten times as competent as the poorest. The ten 
pupils who are best in comprehension have over four and 
one half times as much ability in this direction as the ten 
who have the least ability. 

Comparisons of Improvement. 

Comparisons of the growths in reading rate, compre- 
hension and reading efficiency from grade to grade may be 
made in the case of different schools in the same system. 
In Figs. 12 and 13 are two growth curves for reading efh- 
ciency. The difference in the ability of the pupils in the two 
schools is apparent at once. The situation in the school 
represented in Fig. 12 is very much less satisfactory than 
that in Fig. 13. In the former the improvement is steady 
from grade to grade but the efficiency is low and the highest 
reading ability is not reached until the seventh grade and a 
high reading capacity is not attained even then. In the 
latter school the improvement is steady and much more 
rapid from the third to the fifth grade at which nearly max- 
imum efficiency is reached. With these facts in mind the 
superiority of the school in Fig. 13 is evident. At the fifth 
grade nearly double the reading efficiency of the other school 
has been attained. The pupils are equipped with a tool for 
thought-getting of correspondingly greater efficiency than 
that of those in the other school who are struggling along 
under a handicap which is as unnecessary in this particular 
case as it is serious as an encumbrance. Their capacity to 
study is reduced by their lack of ability to get the maximum 
content from what they read in a minimum of time. The 
marked difference in these two schools is due to the fact that 



50 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



350 ■ 



300 • 



200 • 



VIII 



VI 



VII 



Fig. 12 — Curve representing the growth in efficiency from third to 
eighth grade inclusive in one school system. The scale at the left 
shows the reading efficiency. The improvement from grade to grade is 
steady up to the seventh grade, but the efficiency is low throughout. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 5 1 




Fig. 13 — Curve representing the growth in efficiency from third to 
eighth grade inclusive in one school system. Note the difference 
between this school and that represented in Fig. 12. The improve- 
ment is steady and rapid up to the fifth grade, at which a high efficiency 
is reached. After this, little improvement is made. 



52 BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 

a better method is used in the school which shows the higher 
efficiency. 

These two schools offer an excellent illustration of the way 
in which the effects of different methods of teaching reading 
may be studied. 

Standard Tests. 

It is desirable that several reading tests be given to each 
class each year. After one test has been given near the 
beginning of the year, certain pupils, as previously indi- 
cated, will be found to be deficient in one or more aspects 
of reading ability. The proper procedure after each case 
has been properly diagnosed and the defect found is to apply 
the kind of instruction needed by the individual pupils. 
It will be desirable after a time to know what effect 
this remedial instruction is having, and so a second test 
should be applied. The experience of the writer indicates 
that to get the best results the reading' ability of the class 
should be tested three times each year in the manner indi- 
cated in this bulletin. The first test should be given soon 
after the beginning of the school year, ordinarily about 
September 15, the second about the middle of the year, and 
the last one just before the close of school. These may be 
called standard tests. 

For this purpose alternative selections for tests are neces- 
sary. Several of these have been prepared by the Bureau 
and keys have been made to accompany them. Others will 
be provided as needed. 

Preliminary Tests. 

In addition to the standard tests each teacher should give 
silent reading tests once a month to determine roughly the 
progress and comparative standing of the pupils in her 
grade. These may be called preliminary tests. For these, 
regular reading books of the grade may be used. If there 
is a sufficient supply of reading books on hand, one book 
which is representative of the grade of material which the 
class is reading, may be set aside for test purposes and used 
throughout the year. A book should be selected which has 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 53 

reading matter of about the same grade of difficulty through- 
out in order that some idea of the progress of the pupils 
from month to month may be secured. 

The preUminary silent reading tests should be conducted 
in the same general manner as the regular standard tests. 
The pupils may be asked to open their books and turn them 
face down upon their desks. The teacher may then read 
enough of what precedes to enable them to get the connec- 
tion. At a signal they may turn their books and continue 
the reading silently. After the reading they may repro- 
duce in writing what they have read. This reproduction 
should be carefully examined and graded with sufficient care 
to get a good estimate of each pupil's ability to reproduce 
accurately what he has read. This testing should be a part 
of the regular reading and composition work of the school. 

A test of this kind ought to give each teacher a very good 
idea of the abilities of her pupils and it ought to tell her with 
a reasonable degree of correctness what the particular needs 
of individual pupils are as regards future instruction and 
also the needs of the class as a whole. Tests of this kind 
have been given monthly in School A to which reference has 
been made previously. It is evident that the results fully 
warrant the time expended. In this school each grade 
forms a much more compact group than was the case in any 
other school system tested. This was due to the fact that 
instruction was adapted to scientifically determined needs of 
individual pupils. As might be expected under such con- 
ditions, the average efficiency of this school as a whole was 
the highest of any tested. 

Proposed Tentative Standards. 

At the present time there are no standards for the differ- 
ent aspects of reading ability as measured in the manner 
advocated in this bulletin. The question has been raised 
as to what principle shall be followed in establishing such 
standards. Shall the standard for rate of reading for a 
given grade be the average — or the median — score for a very 
large number of similar grades involving many thousand 
children? It seems to the writer that the highest attain- 



54 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



merit found in any grade of normal pupils under normal 
conditions, provided the grade includes a reasonably large 
number of pupils, is a more satisfactory standard for present 
use for that grade than the average or median of a large 
number of similar grades. The proposed standards given 
in Table 1 1 were made in this way and represent a consid- 
erable number of school systems. The facts of Table 1 1 are 
also shown in Figs. 14, 15 and 16. The object of these 



51 



3< 



III 



IV 



VII 



VIII 



Fig. 14 — Curve representing the growth in rate of reading from third 
to eighth grade inclusive. This curve was drawn by taking the highest 
third grade found thus far, the highest fourth, and so on. The object 
of this curve is for purposes of comparison. When a superintendent 
has measured his reading he may compare his school with this curve, 
and know in what respects it exceeds or fails to reach the highest average 
scores thus far found with this test. This curve may be taken as a 
tentative standard in connection with this particular reading test. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 55 



80 * 



70 ^ 



60 ^ 



50 4 



40 * 



20 ^ 




III 



IV 



VI 



VII 



VIII 



Fig. 15 — Curve representing the growth in comprehension from 
third to eighth grade inclusive. This curve was drawn in the same 
manner as that in Fig. 14. It may be taken as a tentative standard 
for this particular reading test. 



56 



BUREAU OF RESEARCH. 



300 ■ 




ISO " 



Fig. 16 — Curve representing the growth in reading efficiency from 
the third to eighth grade inclusive. This curve was drawn in the same 
manner as those in Figs. 14 and 15. It may be taken, also, as a tenta- 
tive standard. 



THE MEASUREMENT OF ABILITY TO READ. 

TABLE II 
Proposed Tentative Standards in Reading 



57 



Grade 


Highest Grade 

Average for 
Rate of Reading 


Highest Grade 

Average for 
Comprehension 


Highest Grade 

Average for 

Reading 

Efiiciency 


III 


3-32 


46 


127.82 


IV 


3-55 


65 


217.13 


V 


4-49 


61 


290.96 


VI 


4-54 


68 


294 -95 


VII 


465 


87 


322.33 


VIII 


4.84 


79 


323 -57 



standards at the present time is for purposes of comparison. 
A superintendent or principal, after testing his school system 
with the reading test in connection with which these stand- 
ards were derived, may compare the results with them. 
He may then know that his grades exceed, reach or fall 
below the highest grade averages thus far found with this 
particular test. The value of being able to make such a 
comparison is obvious. 



